Process Safety Management and Small Businesses

OSHA has issued a Process Safety Management standard pertaining to Highly Hazardous Chemicals (HHCs), which is contained in 29 CFR 1910.119. The standard identifies the requirements associated with management of Highly Hazardous Chemicals and aims to prevent unwanted and/or unplanned release of HHCs in the workplace. Any company, large or small, involved in on-site storage, handling and/or moving of a HHCs (defined by 29 CFR 1910.119) at or above the threshold quantity set by OSHA must comply. Some examples of small businesses with potential PSM…
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Refinery Explosion Highlights Importance of Comprehensive Process Hazard Analysis

An explosion at an oil refinery last April in Superior, Wisconsin has led to the refinery being cited with eight serious violations by OSHA and the filing of at least two lawsuits. The explosion and subsequent fire resulted in 36 injuries, including 11 OSHA recordable injuries, and the evacuation of significant portions of the city, according to the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB). The CSB concluded that the explosion resulted from the inadvertent mixing of hydrocarbons with air inside the Fluid Catalytic…
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